Greg Holland

Gregory Scott Holland (born November 20, 1985) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.

He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, Colorado Rockies, St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Nationals, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Texas Rangers.

Holland is a three-time All-Star.

He tied a playoff series record by saving 4 games in the ALCS (matching Dennis Eckersley's record in the 1988 ALCS), the first since John Wetteland in the 1996 World Series.

On October 22, Holland won the inaugural Mariano Rivera Award for his outstanding performance as a closer.

Two days later in Game 3 of the World Series he saved his record-tying seventh game of the postseason, sharing the record with Wetteland, Robb Nen, Troy Percival, Brad Lidge and Koji Uehara.

While at Western Carolina, he had a 10–12 win–loss record with a 4.34 earned run average (ERA) from 2005 to 2007.

The Kansas City Royals selected Holland in the 10th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft.

Holland began his professional career in 2007, making 22 relief appearances for the Idaho Falls Chukars of the Rookie-level Pioneer League, and going 6–1 with a 3.48 ERA, striking out 37 batters in 33 innings.

In 2008, he pitched for the Wilmington Blue Rocks of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League, going 4–5 with a 3.42 ERA in 32 games (seven starts), fanning 96 batters in 84 innings.

He split 2009 between the Northwest Arkansas Naturals of the Class AA Texas League and the Omaha Royals of the Class AAA Pacific Coast League, going a combined 4–3 with a 3.81 ERA in 35 relief appearances.

After pitching for Western Carolina University, Holland made his MLB debut with the Royals in 2010.

Holland began the 2010 season with the Omaha Royals, going 3–3 with a 3.81 ERA in 36 relief appearances for them overall.

He was promoted to the majors on July 29, 2010, and made 15 relief appearances for the Kansas City Royals, going 0–1 with 23 strikeouts and a 6.75 ERA in 18 innings.

Holland started the 2011 season in Omaha, but was called up again in May, earning his first major league win in a May 19 game against the Texas Rangers.

He pitched in 46 games for the big league club that season, going 5–1 with a 1.80 ERA.

He allowed only 37 hits and struck out 74 batters in 60 innings.

At the minor league level, he was 2–0 with a 2.08 ERA in 13 relief appearances that season.

In 2012, Holland went 7–4 with 16 saves, 91 strikeouts and a 2.96 ERA in 67 relief appearances.

He assumed closing duties when Jonathan Broxton, who began the season as the team's closer, was traded to the Cincinnati Reds on July 31.

He also pitched in two games at the minor league level that year.

He became their closer and made the All-Star Game in 2013 and 2014, and also won the Mariano Rivera Award in 2014.

In 2013, Holland became the Royals full-time closer and converted 47 of 50 save opportunities.

On September 26, 2013, Holland set the Royals single season saves record with his 46th save in a 3–2 win over the Chicago White Sox.

He surpassed Dan Quisenberry and Jeff Montgomery who both had 45 save seasons.

Holland had his second straight All-Star year in 2014, converting 46 of 48 save opportunities while compiling a 1.44 ERA.

He appeared in eight games in the postseason leading up to the Royals World Series appearance, posting a 1.13 ERA over 8 innings and earning 6 saves.

Holland was a member of the 2015 Kansas City Royals team that won the World Series.

After serving the bulk of the 2015 season as the Royals' closer, compiling 32 saves with a 3.83 ERA, doctors discovered in late September that Holland had a "significant tear" in his right ulnar collateral ligament.

On September 22, the Royals announced that Holland's season was over, and that he would likely require Tommy John surgery.

With the Royals finishing the season 95–67, the team won the 2015 World Series against the New York Mets, their first title in 30 years.

After the 2015 season, Holland was granted free agency.

He missed the 2016 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, and signed with the Colorado Rockies for the 2017 season.

On September 29, the team confirmed that Holland was scheduled to undergo the surgery on October 2, and that he would likely miss most, if not all, of the 2016 season.

Holland missed the entire 2016 season as he continued to recover from Tommy John surgery.

He led the National League in saves with the Rockies, and signed with the Cardinals for the 2018 season.

Holland attended McDowell High School in Marion, North Carolina, and he played for the school's baseball team as a third baseman.

He suffered a broken jaw when he was hit in the face by a ball, requiring his jaw to be wired shut.

He lost weight, dropping to about 150 lbs, and drew little interest from college baseball programs.

He enrolled at Western Carolina University, and walked on to the Catamounts' baseball team as a pitcher.